The Empath (episode)
On a doomed planet Kirk, Spock, and McCoy become the subjects of an alien experiment whose mysterious intention involves a beautiful, empathic woman. Summary The ''Enterprise'' is ordered to evacuate a research station on a planet whose sun, Minara, is about to go nova. Kirk, Spock, and McCoy beam down to the planet, but find the six-month old research station abandoned. Informed of an imminent solar flare with high levels of cosmic rays, Kirk orders the Enterprise to leave orbit, reasoning that the landing party will be protected by the planet's atmosphere during the 74.1 solar hours it will take for the flare to subside. Upon consulting a visual tape recording, the landing party discovers that the two researchers, Drs. Ozaba and Linke, mysteriously disappeared three months ago. Soon after this discovery the landing party similarly vanishes. Moments later Kirk, Spock, and McCoy find themselves transported 121.32 meters below the planet's surface where after wandering through dark caverns they encounter a mute, humanoid woman reclining on a dimly lit, cross-shaped couch. The woman, whom McCoy names Gem, is an empath whose sensitive nervous system actually feels the emotional and physiological reactions of others. Kirk's attempts to get answers from Gem naturally fail. Two different humanoid aliens named Thann and Lal suddenly appear to the landing party. Claiming to be Vians, they make it clear that they are responsible for the disappearance of Ozaba and Linke, both of whom have apparently died because of their "own imperfections." They momentarily trap the landing party in a force field while they attend to Gem, and then they depart. Kirk then helps Gem and his landing party to escape, but they are caught by the Vians and brought back to the underground lair. The Vians mysteriously note that Kirk has the "prime ingredient" because of his will to survive. The Vians bring Kirk to what appears to be a laboratory. Here, where the bodies of Ozaba and Linke are displayed like specimens, the Vians torture Kirk, after which they return him to Spock, McCoy, and Gem. Moved by the sight of the injured Kirk, Gem heals his wounds, transferring his actual pain and injuries to herself before doing so. The process is physically draining, though, and apparently has its limits. The Vians observe Gem, and before leaving they indicate that for their next experiemental subject Kirk must choose either Spock or McCoy. To make the decision all the more difficult, the Vians indicate that there is a 93% chance that Spock will suffer brain damage and permanent insanity, and a 87% chance that McCoy will die. Later, plagued with symptoms resembling the bends, Kirk is caught off guard by McCoy, who renders Kirk unconscious with a hypo. Now in command, Spock declares that he will go with the Vians at the appointed time, but McCoy renders Spock unconscious as well, intending to sacrifice himself for his two friends. All of these noble efforts at self-sacrifice are observed by Gem. Taken to the Vians' laboratory, McCoy undergoes extensive torture. Meanwhile, now awake, Spock figures out how to use one of the Vians' hand-held teleportation devices, transporting Kirk, Gem, and himself to the laboratory, where they find Bones on the verge of death and the Vians nowhere to be found. Gem attempts to heal McCoy, as she did Kirk, but the injuries are too severe, endangering her own life. She struggles with the alternatives of saving or sacrificing herself. The Vians now appear, and at this time they explain to Kirk, Spock, and the dying McCoy that they have been part of an experiment to test whether Gem's species is worthy of being saved from the impending destruction of Menara. Apparently the Vians have the power to save one species threatened by the nova, and they want to be certain that the species in question possesses such traits as self-sacrifice, the will to survive, the passion to know, and the love of life. The Vians are disappointed that Gem does not sacrifice her life for McCoy, but Kirk convinces them that she has in fact done enough and that they have lost touch with love, compassion, and the very traits they are looking for in Gem. The Vians heal McCoy and, taking Gem with them, teleport from the library, presumably to save Gem's species. The landing party returns safely to the Enterprise, which has resumed orbit after the solar flare. Log Entries *''Captain’s log, stardate 5121.5. Orbiting the second planet in the Minarian star system. This star has long given evidence of entering a nova phase and six months ago, a research station was established to make close-up studies of the star as its end approaches. Minara is now entering a critical period, and the Enterprise has been ordered to evacuate the station before the planet becomes uninhabitable. Yet our attempts to contact the station's personnel have been, so far, unsuccessful. '' Memorable Quotes "Well, she seems harmless enough." "The sandbats of Maynark IV appear to be inanimate rock crystals . . . until they attack." : - McCoy and Spock "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm going to call her ''Gem." " Gem, doctor?" "''Well, it's better than ''Hey, you. " : - '''McCoy' and Spock "I'm a doctor, not a coal miner." : - McCoy "I was convinced in the same manner you were, Captain . . . by the good doctor's hypo." : - Spock "The best defense is a strong offense, and I intend to start offending right now." : - '''Kirk' "You've got a good bedside manner, Spock." : - McCoy "If death is all you understand, here are four lives for you. We ''will not leave our friend." : - '''Kirk' Background Information * This episode was written by Joyce Muskat, one of only two fans who were able to sell scripts to the original series. Robert Justman recommended her script and Jean Lisette Aroeste's two scripts be bought. Revised final draft 23 July 1968, filmed late July, early August. * The scene where Kirk is transported away by the Vians is well done. The imprint of his body is left behind in the thick dust on the floor, but there are no footprints. Shatner must have been hooked up to ropes and lifted off the floor to make this edit so effective. * The sound effect of the Vians' lab can also be heard in Norman's lab in "I, Mudd". * The spiral staircase in the station will be re-used in "For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky". * The footage of the Minaran sun seems to be stock footage from "Operation -- Annihilate!". * This was one of the few episodes to explicitly mention Scripture from the Bible, specifically Psalm 95, verse 4 : "In His hands are the depths of the Earth. The heights of the mountains are his also"; and the Gospel of Matthew, 13:45-46: "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it." * Spock acts callously toward McCoy by telling him that by knocking Kirk out, he has left Spock in command and that, as the one in command, the Vulcan will be the one to go with the Vians. After this exchange Gem, concerned at McCoy's hurt feelings, approaches Spock and uses her empathic abilities. Her look of confusion changes into an understanding smile. She knows that Spock's mask of cold logic is just a mask and that he is taking this action to protect the others. It is an excellent unspoken moment, well-acted by Kathryn Hays. * A minor continuity error occurs when the landing party first encounters Gem: she is lying on the red triangular center of the dais, but in a close-up she is on the golden carpet that surrounds it. * The couch itself is a gigantic version of the agonizers seen in "Mirror, Mirror" and "Day of the Dove." * McCoy's tunic goes from polyester before he's tortured to the old velour style after. Note the difference in color between his tunic and Spock's when Spock is scanning McCoy's injuries. * The sound stage was surrounded by black curtains to create the bizarre, stark setting of the Vians' experiment. * More excellent make-up from Fred Phillips with the large-craniumed Vians. * The preview of the episode shows Gem's healing of wounds done by jump-cuts, rather than as fades. * The Vians are immune to the Vulcan neck pinch. Gary Seven was the only other humanoid to be resistant to it. * This was DeForest Kelley's personal favorite episode. * In another one of the strange connections between 'Star Trek' and 'The Outer Limits', "The Empath" has similarities to an episode called "Nightmare". In that episode, humans are interrogated by aliens in a minimalistic set. John Erman also directed "Nightmare", and Willard Sage (Thann) was one of the people behind the interrogations. *Nichelle Nichols (Uhura) does not appear in this episode. *In the United Kingdom, the BBC skipped this episode in all runs of the series though to the early 1990s, due to it's content. It was finally shown for the first time on 5th January 1994. Links and References VHS edition available through Amazon under ISBN 6300988597. Main cast * William Shatner as Kirk * Leonard Nimoy as Spock * DeForest Kelley as McCoy * James Doohan as Scott * George Takei as Sulu * Nichelle Nichols as Uhura Guest Stars * Kathryn Hays as Gem * Alan Bergmann as Lal * Willard Sage as Thann * Davis Roberts as Dr. Ozaba * Jason Wingreen as Dr. Linke * William Blackburn as Hadley (uncredited) * Roger Holloway as Roger Lemli (uncredited) * Richard Geary as Security Guard (uncredited) References bends, the; blood; decompression chamber; energy transfer device; Gamma Vertis IV; Minara; Minara II; Minara system; Minarans; nitrogen; Ritter scale; sand bats; sickbay; telepathy; Vians. DVD Media Information * Star Trek: The Original Series, Volume 32 (original two episode single-disc release) * ''Star Trek: The Original Series'' - The Complete Third Season (disc 3 of the set) Empath, The de:Der Plan der Vianer nl:The Empath